Bhimashankar Temple – Legends

Bhimashankar Temple – Legends

Jyotirlinga:

According to Shiva Mahapuraan, Brahma (The Creator) and Vishnu (The Preserver) once had a disagreement about which of them was supreme. To test them, Shiva pierced the three worlds as an immeasurable pillar of light, the Jyotirlinga. Vishnu and Brahma parted company to determine the extent of each end of the pillar. Brahma, who had set off upward, lied that he had discovered the upper end of the pillar, but Vishnu, who had gone in the direction of the base of the pillar, admitted that he had not. Shiva then appeared as a second Jyotirlinga and cursed Brahma, telling him that he would have no place in the ceremonies, though Vishnu would be worshipped until the 'end of eternity'.

The Jyotirlinga is the supreme indivisible reality from which Shiva appears. jyotirlinga shrines commemorate this time when Shiva appeared. It was believed that there were originally sixty-four Jyothirlingas. Twelve are considered to be especially auspicious and holy. Each of the twelve sites takes the name of the presiding deity and each is considered a separate manifestation of Shiva. At all these sites, the primary deity is a lingam representing the beginning less and endless Stambha pillar, symbolizing the Shiva's infinite nature.

The twelve jyotirlingas are;

·        Somnath in Gujarat,

·        Mallikarjuna at Srisailam in Andhra Pradesh, 

·        Mahakaleswar at Ujjain in Madhya Pradesh, 

·        Omkareshwar in Madhya Pradesh, 

·        Kedarnath in Uttarakhand, 

·        Bhimashankar in Maharashtra, 

·        Viswanath at Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh, 

·        Triambakeshwar in Maharashtra, 

·        Vaidyanath at Deoghar in Jharkhand,

·        Nageshvara Jyotirlinga, 

·        Rameshwar at Rameswaram in Tamil Nadu,

·        Grishneshwar at Aurangabad in Maharashtra.

Annihilation of Demon, Bhima:

Long ago, in the dense forests of Dakini, on the lofty ranges of the Sahyadri, there lived an evil Asura by the name Bhima with his mother Karkati. The divine and the mortals were scared of him alike. But he was confronted by certain questions about his own existence which continuously tormented him. When Bhima could no longer sustain his agony and curiosity, he asked his mother to unveil the mysteries of his life. He urged his mother to tell him who his father was and why he had abandoned them in the wilderness of the forest.

After much hesitation and with a lingering fear Karkati, his mother revealed to him that he was the son of the mighty Kumbhakarna, the younger brother of the Lankadhishwar, the mighty King Ravana of Lanka. Lord Vishnu in his incarnation as Lord Rama annihilated Kumbhakarna. Karkati told Bhima, that her husband and his father was killed by Ram in the great war. This infuriated Bhima and he vowed to take revenge against Lord Vishnu. To achieve this, he embarked on a severe penance to please Lord Brahma.

The compassionate creator was pleased by the dedicated devotee and granted him immense powers. This was a terrible mistake by Brahma. The evil tyrant caused havoc in all the three worlds. He defeated King Indra and conquered the heavens. He also defeated a staunch devotee of Lord Shiva - Kamaroopeshwar and put him in the dungeons. He started torturing Rishis and Sadhus. All this angered the Gods. All the Devas, along with Lord Brahma, went to Lord Shiva to come to their rescue.

Lord Shiva consoled the Gods and agreed to rescue them from the tyrant. On the other hand, Bhima insists and orders Kamaroopeshwar to worship him instead of Lord Shiva. When Kamaroopeshwar did not do that and refused to do pooja to him, the tyrant Bhima raised his sword to strike the Shiva Linga, to which Kamaroopeshwar was doing abhishekam and pooja. As soon as Bhima managed to raise his sword, Lord Shiva appeared before him in all his magnificence. Then a terrible war began.

Then, the holy sage Narada appeared and requested Lord Shiva to put an end to this war. It was then that Lord Shiva reduced the evil demon to ashes and thus concluded the saga of tyranny. All the Gods and the holy sages present there requested Lord Shiva to make this place his abode. Lord Shiva thus manifested himself in the form of the Bhimashankar Jyotirlinga. It is believed that the sweat that poured forth from Lord Shiva's body after the battle formed the Bhimarathi River.

Tripuranthaka:

This temple is closely associated with the legend of Shiva slaying the demon Tripurasura associated with the invincible flying citadels, the "Tripuras". Shiva is said to have made this his abode in the Bhimashankar form, upon the request of the Gods, on the crest of the Sahyadri hills, and the sweat that poured forth from his body after the battle is said to have formed the Bhimarathi river.